[Brad]

Anyone getting ready yet?

The list of exhibitors already looks longer than last year.
http://lonestaraudiofest.com/exhibitors.html

Strongly considering bringing a vinyl source this year, in addition to the music server and DSD DAC.

[gab]

Looks like Bamberg will be bringing these this year: http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=124497.msg1312073;topicseen#new

[Brad]

Here is a better list of what I'll be bringing this year:

Sources:    Teac UD-501 DAC driven by Custom Windows 2012 server
                  Marantz SACD player
                  (Maybe) Audio Technica AT-1240 turntable

Preamp:     Hornshoppe Naked Truth buffered passive
                  Boozhound phono stage

Amps:        Pass Audio Camp Amp monoblocks
                  TPA 3110 and 3116 amps
                  Naksa 80

Speakers:    In progress, OB with AMT-style tweeter, 15" mid, and 2 15" subs
                    May also bring the little Pioneer '41 bookshelves

Beer:         Texas microbrews

[Brad]

The new OBs are coming around pretty well, and have some good synergy with the Audio Camp Amp monoblocks.   
The mid is the Hawthorne Sterling 15" and the tweeter is the Dayton AMT Pro4

[Brad]

Had another idea:

Why don't we put together a swap meet as part of the event, with proceeds going to help Gary Dodd?
I've got a few items to donate that have some value, and I'm sure others do.
We'll have a good crowd of folks who might be interested in that gear all in the same place.   

[Brad]

Any requests on the microbrews?

I've heard from a few others who are going to be there.
Less than a week away now   

[marvda1]

yes, a couple......free..free..free

[Brad]

Quite a few folks are already en route.
I'll be heading out for Dallas tomorrow a.m., and hopefully set up and playing tunes by 2pm.

The session schedule looks pretty good this year, too.
Saturday

    10:00am to 6:00pm     Exhibitor rooms open to the public
    11:00am to 12:00pm   Basic Room Acoustics, by Johnson Knowles
    1:00pm to 2:00pm       Tube Amplifier Seminar, by Bruce Heran
    3:00pm to 4:00pm     "Things You Should Never Do With A Turntable", by Scott Sheaffer
    4:00pm to 5:00pm       Horn design, a look into the world of acoustic amplification, by Johan Van Zyl
    6:00pm to 8:00pm      All those who wish to join us may go to dinner together
    6:00pm to 8:00pm      Private showings, exhibitor rooms open optional
    8:00pm                      Exhibitor rooms closed for the night

[Brad]

Based on the overwhelming response to this topic, looks like Marv in Dallas is going to have a LOT of beverages to consume. 

Headed out  - hope to see a lot of folks there and hear some new music.
 

[Brad]

Quite a few folks here.
I am in 316 - come on by.

Fighting Murphy a bit.  Cable to amp power supply failed, and wireless router too.
So no Nexus 7 control of the system 

Should have the room node issues resolved by Sunday

[glynnw]

What happened to this event? Nice people there today, but maybe half as many rooms as last year.

[Brad]

Lighter turnout for rooms, plus they had us way too spread out over different floors.
Had they condensed things, it would have been easier for me to make it to the other demo rooms.

Still, a great show for me, chance to visit with fellow audio geeks, hear some new music, show off the stuff I've built.
Even with the light turnout, it took one of the attendees a full day and a half to make it to all the rooms.
I felt like the foot traffic through the room on Saturday was about the same as the last few years.
Plus Babe's Chicken Dinner is ALWAYS good.

[art]

Lighter turnout for rooms, plus they had us way too spread out over different floors.
Had they condensed things, it would have been easier for me to make it to the other demo rooms.

Really?

In previous years, they had folks up on the 5th floor. Because the turnout was much larger. A lot of folks who had been there, several years running, were not there. They could have put everyone on one floor, as the exhibitors were way down.

Face it: it is more of a DIY gathering. A lot of folks from industry are shying away from that sort of affair. And how many DIYers are up for spending $200, just to schmooze with their buddies? A dwindling number, that is who.

Plus, I think Danny's absence played a part. In the years when he was unable to attend, it had an effect of turnout.

[Brad]

Some good points, Art.
We're usually on 1-2 floors, taking up most of one.  With the 20ish rooms this year, we could have easily been on one floor.
We were spread out over 3-4 floors.

Plus I think Wayne's (Pi Speakers) absence had something to do with the turnout too.
We did spend some time talking about what to change for next year.

This does seem to be more of a DIY event.  It's hard for the commercial folks to sell to the DIY crowd. 
(why should I spend $15k on your amp, when I can build one for $1k)
BUT, LSAF does not have the 'uptight' vibe of the bigger shows - it's a friendly group, which is why I keep going.
You can actually listen to music, talk about new music you've found in the last year, etc.

There was also a very good set of tech sessions this year - thanks much to those who presented 

[RandyH]

 I attended LSAF a couple of times.  Most recently was the 2013 event.  I probably do not represent the typical demographic of the majority of attendees and exhibitors at this show as I am not in to DIY projects.  I am more of a main stream audiophile consumer with an interest in smaller audiophile companies (many represented on this site).  I would be interested in seeing/hearing the products of many of these smaller companies that have a fairly prominent presence on the Internet but not in local HiFi showrooms.  I would think the DFW area is a large enough market to support a larger, more diverse audio show that would attract and include many of these smaller and mid level manufacturers.  I enjoyed the show and enjoyed the opportunity to see and hear many of the products on display.  I guess I just wish it had a little more "mainstream" representation.

Is there any interest in expanding the scope of LSAF to attract a larger audience or are the organizers content to keep it a little under the radar, as compared to most of the other HiFi shows?

[art]

I  think the guys who try to sell high-end (retail-wise) would disagree with you. How many viable outlets can you name?

OTOH...............the rooms tend to not sound good, the A/C usually seems to not function well enough to sustain the kind of activity, and while the expense is not high, there is just not enough reasons for local manufacturers to show up.

As for why no retailers feature local manufacturers................beyond the scope of this thread. Some of us actively avoid the local market.

[andy_c]

One vendor said that because they moved the date of AXPONA up this year, it was impractical for him to attend both.  In 2013, AXPONA was March 8-10.  This year it was April 25-27.  Next year it is April 24-26.  Maybe it would make sense to change the LSAF date for next year?

[TheRavenator]

One vendor said that because they moved the date of AXPONA up this year, it was impractical for him to attend both.  In 2013, AXPONA was March 8-10.  This year it was April 25-27.  Next year it is April 24-26.  Maybe it would make sense to change the LSAF date for next year?

Am I wrong or did this show have a much higher attendance back when it was during the middle of May rather than the first weekend?  My company did not exist back then, but I am looking at the history of the event and it looks as if there were a LOT more rooms full of equipment and attendees back then.

It does make sense to coordinate it better with the other events that have dates posted.  Or maybe it doesn't really matter! 

One thing is for absolute positive sure...   this show MUST NOT die into oblivion.  I love this show for it's laid back Texas attitude and general LOVE and Friendship between attendees AND the industry peoples.   Not being able to go and sit down in extremely cool rooms like "OddWatt" and "Blow Torch Audio" along with home brew setups like Skipper's rig, and so many of the others that were missing this year had a HUGE effect on the overall "feel" of the show. 

Losing this show would be a serious loss to the audio community.  Come to mention it, Home Brew from the Blackman Brewery was also a serious omission this year.  And the fact that Dave's vinyl rig and "older than my Dad" vacuum tubes in a pleasing rig - missing in 2014 - made me tear up a little.

I seriously LOVE this show.  I would hate to see it go.  Let's all do our very best to bring her back to her glory days...  PLEASE HELP!

Even two or three years ago this show had triple the foot traffic, and double the exhibitors over this year.  I think it's time to bear down and bring her back.  I missed Dave Slagle's New York attitude, and the fact that there was always a mix of big audio blended into DIY and even people bringing their home rigs~!  Nowhere else can you see that!!!!  NOWHERE!

Contrary to some thoughts and previous comments, I do not think the larger industry players come to this show to SELL something while we are there.  I personally, absolutely do NOT ever expect that. 

Yeah, it might be about creating a brand familiarity.  And it may be about having a place where the local Dallas/Ft. Worth area people can come and listen to something they have been considering.  That is what an audio show is about I think...  being able to listen to new gear!

I come for that of course, but more to have fun after hours with my audiobug friends, and drink a few microbrews and listen to music.  After all, who has really sold much of anything at the show.  I would be lying if I said that it's not about becoming a more familiar brand name and NOT about people eventually getting around to making their minds up some day in the future whether they might purchase something with your brand on it.  It's also about being able to show the public what you have been working on for the previous year - be it cardboard speaker cabinets or a brand new brand name....   that is what the LSAF does that no other show easily allows.

But it's also about the future of the event itself and the camaraderie it represents.  I think all of us probably have a LOT more fun at this event than any other of the large high end audio shows we all know about.  Those events are about press coverage and are a lot like hard work.  LSAF is more about having fun with friends and listening to good music with a brew in hand!

Now the future of the event may be in jeopardy so we have to get together and think of a way to help bring this show back to its heyday.


CB

[Norman Tracy]

Lone Star Audio Fest is a fun little show one hopes will continue. I have exhibited there in the past and hope to again in the future. I would have been there this year but it was scheduled on the same weekend as my wife’s birthday, one of those birthdays where one’s age ends in a zero. So I thought it ill-advised I ask to be excused to go play with my audio buddies!

Regarding glynnw’s question “What happened to this event?”. As an attendee and previous years exhibitor both when it was held in Tulsa and in Dallas I would answer, ‘nothing happened, it is what it is’. Allow me to explain. The intent of LSAF is to be a low key grass roots event open to enthusiasts, dealers, and manufacturers. Towards that end as has been mentioned the only cost to participate is the special event discounted room rate to the hotel and whatever your travel costs are. Compare that to Rocky Mountain Audio Fest where costs to display is $2350 to $7000 or CES that starts at $5000ish going up from there, way up*. Basically a couple hundred vs. thousands, which is why some of the exhibitors at LSAF are just dudes who thought it would be fun to haul there system in, hang out, and play tunes with fellow music lovers and audio geeks. However, the good news of low entry cost is also the bad news of low entry cost. Specifically unlike the commercial shows the organizers of LSAF have no marketing budget for dead trees or web magazine ads or paid staff to author and place the ads and press releases. Grass roots DIY marketing has to suffice and will vary depending on how much time the volunteers can spare and the social media buzz and momentum that can be developed. Also if you have ever been a part of a volunteer organization you know how they can ebb and flow depending on if the people involved are fresh and enthusiastic or approaching burnout hanging on hoping for relief in the form of fresh volunteers who will please show up soon. And as has already been pointed out the high-end audio industry is presently overloaded with regional shows.

The organizers of LSAF hang out at Audio Rountable, more info and discussion can be found there. Also a good place to volunteer to help in 2015.

http://audioroundtable.com

*As an example of how expensive CES can get when I attended 2 years ago I noticed some of the suites in The Venetian hotel where ‘specialty audio’ (CES speak for high-end audio) was located had there bathroom doors sealed shut with plastic tie wraps. Turns out that despite the fact you are renting a hotel suite to display your wares in if you want access to the bathroom of your suite that was an upcharge. Yes, a hotel room where the bathroom is extra.



ACG's 2010 LSAF System

[glynnw]

My main point of contention is that the LSAF 2014 website listed  many companies that would be attending and this list looked very little like what I found actually at the show.  For those of us who may drive several hours each way to attend, it is a real disappointment to find this discrepancy in exhibitors.  Frankly, I would not have driven over from Louisiana if I had know this. 

Perhaps one of the Texas clubs can sponsor this event.  There seems to be a good group in Houston - consider moving the show to where it can receive the support it needs.

And please understand I am not trying to be rude or snarky.  I have attended this show regularly for the last few years and enjoyed it in the past.  Shoot, I enjoyed what was there this year - I just wish there had been more of it.